The present invention relates to a high speed digital crossbar switch for selecting and transferring data from multiple sources to multiple destinations. More particularly, the present invention relates to a crossbar switch which can be dynamically programmed so that it is suitable for use in reconfigurable networks for fault-tolerant routing.
The conventional Von Neumann computer architecture utilizes only a single (or a few) transmissions to be broadcast at any given time. Such machines use hard wired switching networks which limit their application range. This limitation in transmission capability translates into computers which are unable to perform to the extent required for the solution of such complex problems as integrated circuit simulation, global weather predictions, monte carlo simulations in solid state particle physics or fault simulation of a nuclear reactor.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a digital crossbar switch capable of selecting and transferring data from multiple sources to multiple destinations. It is a further object to provide a digital crossbar switch that can be dynamically reprogrammed.